Brookline’s Annual Town Meeting starts on Tuesday, with the town’s fiscal challenges front and center. As with every spring session of Town Meeting, the budget is the biggest item on the agenda. This year, Town Meeting members will vote on whether to approve a $456.6 million budget that maintains town services, but includes millions of… Continue reading Town Meeting preview: A trash fight, broker fees, democracy and foie gras
Category: Schools
School Committee rejects six-figure gift that would have revived equity office
Brookline’s School Committee on Thursday declined a $188,455 gift that would have partially reinstated the district’s equity office, which was eliminated in March to help close a budget gap for fiscal year 2026. The money, which was raised by a coalition of Brookline groups over the past two months, would have funded one assistant director… Continue reading School Committee rejects six-figure gift that would have revived equity office
Outside investigation confirms fiscal mismanagement in school admin, warns of future deficits
An outside auditor’s review of Brookline’s school finances and operations, released on Tuesday by the town, revealed that financial mismanagement by school administrators has contributed to budgetary crises in the district. According to auditing firm CliftonLarsonAllen, rising salaries and special education costs in the schools are “not sustainable” and will force more budget cuts in… Continue reading Outside investigation confirms fiscal mismanagement in school admin, warns of future deficits
Superintendent’s departure leaves big questions unanswered for Brookline’s schools
Editor’s note: This story was published before the release of an outside auditor’s review of financial management in the Public Schools of Brookline. Read more about that here. Another superintendent is leaving Brookline, and the community is torn about why. Linus Guillory, who made history as Brookline’s first Black superintendent, announced in April that he… Continue reading Superintendent’s departure leaves big questions unanswered for Brookline’s schools
Here is every cut the School Committee has made to next year’s budget
In March, the School Committee was tasked with closing a roughly $8.2-million budget gap for fiscal year 2026, which starts July 1. After weeks of deliberation — and not without controversy — the School Committee closed the gap on May 1. Beginning in March, administrators including Superintendent Linus Guillory and Brookline High School Head of School Anthony… Continue reading Here is every cut the School Committee has made to next year’s budget
Brookline High school science class creates Climate Change Time Capsule
A chunk of coral, a deck of cards, a children’s book about dinosaur fossils, and a pair of bird watching binoculars. Those seemingly random objects were some of the items that local high schoolers chose to preserve for the next 25 years underneath the playground at Cypress Field on Tappan Street. On Friday, May 9,… Continue reading Brookline High school science class creates Climate Change Time Capsule
A gas leak, a lost job, and a legal fight: How a Brookline special education teacher ‘disappeared’
A natural gas leak at the Lincoln School. A slew of medical complications — and later, life-changing diagnoses. A job lost, then a position eliminated, allegedly leaving students without special education services. And now, complicated and drawn-out legal battles with the state and the district. These events encompass the past year and a half for… Continue reading A gas leak, a lost job, and a legal fight: How a Brookline special education teacher ‘disappeared’
Deputy superintendent Jodi Fortuna to depart at end of school year
Jodi Fortuna, Brookline’s deputy superintendent of teaching and learning, will depart from her position at the end of June, becoming the third high-ranking administrator to leave the school district in the last six months. Fortuna is leaving to take on the role of superintendent of the Lunenburg Public Schools in central Massachusetts, she told Brookline.News.… Continue reading Deputy superintendent Jodi Fortuna to depart at end of school year
Three new principals set to lead K-8 schools next year
Public Schools of Brookline Superintendent Linus Guillory recently selected two interim principals and one outside candidate to fill open principal positions at the Baker, Pierce and Ridley schools. The vacancies are filled at a tumultuous time in Brookline schools’ leadership. In the past six months, multiple administrators — including Guillory himself — have resigned from their posts.… Continue reading Three new principals set to lead K-8 schools next year
Election results: Rubenstein wins Select Board seat; Weintraub, Frias, Perry elected to School committee
In Tuesday’s town election, voters sent Michael Rubenstein to the Select Board and elected two new faces, Bob Weintraub and Danna Perry, as well as one incumbent, Valerie Frias, to the School Committee, according to unofficial results published by the Town Clerk. In the race for Select Board, the town’s highest office, Rubenstein, a 62-year-old… Continue reading Election results: Rubenstein wins Select Board seat; Weintraub, Frias, Perry elected to School committee
Is this the year for top-ranked BHS boys volleyball team?
It’s been more than three decades since Brookline High School’s boys’ volleyball team last captured a state championship in 1992. Currently ranked #1 in the state with a 12-1 record, the Warriors are eyeing another one, after a transformation in culture and with a strong sense of team chemistry. First-year head coach Lexi De La… Continue reading Is this the year for top-ranked BHS boys volleyball team?
School Committee cautions educators against using MTA’s ‘offensive’ teaching materials on Israel-Palestine
Brookline’s School Committee “strongly cautioned” the district against using the Massachusetts Teachers Association’s recommended instructional materials regarding Israel and Palestine and expressed its intent to create an “instructional materials policy” in a resolution passed on May 1. The resolution was proposed by School Committee Member Jesse Hefter and came after the MTA — a union representing… Continue reading School Committee cautions educators against using MTA’s ‘offensive’ teaching materials on Israel-Palestine
School Committee closes budget gap by tapping ‘circuit breaker’ funds
The School Committee on Thursday made the final adjustments needed to close an $8.2 million budget gap projected for fiscal year 2026, which begins July 1. The committee unanimously approved a $142,148,452 budget for the Public Schools of Brookline, moving one step closer to the end of a months-long budget process. Next, Town Meeting must… Continue reading School Committee closes budget gap by tapping ‘circuit breaker’ funds
A popular adult education nonprofit faces an uncertain future amid schools budget crunch
The School Committee voted to pause funding at the end of the summer for Brookline Adult and Community Education, a public education nonprofit that offers a wide array of courses to adults, children and seniors in Brookline. The School Committee previously voted to help fund BACE — which serves thousands of people but has not… Continue reading A popular adult education nonprofit faces an uncertain future amid schools budget crunch
Schools superintendent Guillory will resign on June 30
Public Schools of Brookline Superintendent Linus Guillory will resign from his position, he announced Monday morning. Guillory, who became superintendent in 2021, will remain in the role until June 30. “Serving the students, families, staff, and community of Brookline has been one of the most meaningful and rewarding chapters of my professional life,” Guillory wrote… Continue reading Schools superintendent Guillory will resign on June 30
The Brookline schools equity office is in limbo. Here’s what its work looks like.
The removal of Brookline’s Office of Educational Equity is one of many cuts made to narrow the schools’ $8 million budget gap. Now, with fundraising underway to reinstate the office and a School Committee torn about how to respond, the office is in limbo. A divided School Committee voted 5-4 on March 13 to eliminate… Continue reading The Brookline schools equity office is in limbo. Here’s what its work looks like.
On board the MBTA’s 51 bus, riders find community and convenience, with room to grow
On a 39 degree evening, Gang Zheng waits for the MBTA’s 51 bus at the Reservoir terminal. She is on her way home to Brookline from her job as a researcher at a pharmaceutical company in Cambridge. It is the final leg of her journey home, after first taking the Red Line and Green Line… Continue reading On board the MBTA’s 51 bus, riders find community and convenience, with room to grow
School Committee notes: FY26 budget gap reduced to $1.7 million
The School Committee continued to reduce Brookline schools’ fiscal year 2026 budget gap on Thursday, but some of the most controversial cuts were rejected or postponed. By the end of Thursday’s School Committee meeting, the district’s projected budget gap was reduced to about $1.7 million, down from roughly $8 million earlier this year. The gap,… Continue reading School Committee notes: FY26 budget gap reduced to $1.7 million
Meet the candidates in a crowded race for School Committee
This year’s race for Brookline’s School Committee is the most competitive since 2018, with six candidates, including two incumbents, running for three open seats in the May 6 election. Most new candidates cited the district’s cyclical fiscal problems as a top reason for running — particularly the $8-million budget gap for fiscal year 2026, which the… Continue reading Meet the candidates in a crowded race for School Committee
Brookline group aims to fund equity positions cut by School Committee
A coalition of Brookline groups is raising money to fund equity-focused positions across the district that were eliminated by a divided School Committee on March 13. Jodi Fortuna, the district’s deputy superintendent of teaching and learning, announced at a School Committee meeting Thursday that the coalition, coordinated by the Brookline Community Foundation, has raised about… Continue reading Brookline group aims to fund equity positions cut by School Committee